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Obama administration says most young illegal immigrants will be sent home, $2 billion in enforcement funds sought

Immigration Overload

Young boys sleep in a holding cell where hundreds of mostly Central American immigrant children are being processed and held at the U.S. Customs and Border Protection Nogales Placement Center on Wednesday, June 18, 2014, in Nogales, Ariz. CPB provided media tours Wednesday of two locations in Brownsville, Texas, and Nogales, that have been central to processing the more than 47,000 unaccompanied children who have entered the country illegally since Oct. 1. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin, Pool)
(Ross D. Franklin)

They will not have a legal basis for remaining in this country and will be returned.

Most of the unaccompanied minors arriving in the U.S. will be deported, the White House said Monday, as concerns over care for the flood of illegal immigrants pouring over the country's southwestern border continues to grow.

The comments come as President Barack Obama prepares to ask Congress for $2 billion to address the issue. The money would cover opening additional detention facilities and hiring more immigration judges.

Figures from Customs and Border Protection show 52,193 unaccompanied children age 17 and below - the vast majority from Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras - have been apprehended at the southwestern border from last Oct. 1 through June 15.

White House spokesperson Josh Earnest said the administration will allow the immigration review process to proceed but does not expect many of the children to stay in the U.S.

"Based on what we know about these cases, it is unlikely that most of these kids will qualify for humanitarian relief," Earnest said. "And what that means is, it means that they will not have a legal basis for remaining in this country and will be returned."

To qualify to stay in the U.S., the minors would have to prove there are part of a targeted class that is suffering governmental persecution, The Hill reports. They also must prove their government is unable or unwilling to protect them.

On Sunday, Department of Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson said his agency is trying to determine the best way to handle the children.

"There is a deportation proceeding that is commenced against illegal migrants, including children," Johnson told NBC News. "We are looking at ways to create additional options for dealing with the children in particular, consistent with our laws and our values."